The first two Vulcan test flights last year used a configuration of the rocket with two strap-on boosters to add an extra burst of speed off the launch pad. For this flight, which the Space Force has named USSF-106, the launcher will fly with four solid rocket boosters made by Northrop Grumman.

The company lofted an experimental navigation satellite on behalf of the U.S. military Tuesday at 8:56 p.m. EDT (0056 GMT on Aug. 13). The mission saw the company's powerful new Vulcan Centaur rocket take off from Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.